Over the next decade, mobile and wireless traffic is predicted to increase a thousand-fold. This increase is partly due to the ever increasing amount of mobile traffic to and from user devices for all types of applications ranging from e-banking to on-demand video streaming. The predicted increase in mobile and wireless traffic is also due to the increasing interest in machine-to-machine communication over mobile communications networks. In particular, the so-called “Internet of Things” is expected to result in 50 billion connected devices by 2020.
Development of 5th Generation (5G) mobile communications networks to, among other things, support the predicted increase in mobile traffic is underway. In order to meet future demands of mobile traffic, it is expected that various technologies will be used. These technologies include Direct Device-to-Device Communication (D2D), MMC, Moving Networks (MNs), Ultra-Dense Networks (UDNs), and Ultra-Reliable Communication (URC).
A MN utilizes nomadic nodes in a dynamic Radio Access Network (RAN) to provide, e.g., improved coverage and/or capacity. A nomadic node is a node that moves from location to location, but is stationary for a relatively long period of time at each location. In a MN, nomadic nodes can function as temporary radio access nodes (e.g., temporary base stations) that provide radio access to nearby wireless devices, which are sometimes referred to as User Equipment devices (UEs). It is expected that nomadic nodes can connect via, e.g., a wireless backhaul network to an existing network infrastructure, e.g., a macro site (cell site gateway), to guarantee global connection (i.e., traffic transport up to the service edge).
A UDN refers to a network in which the density of radio access nodes far exceeds the density of radio access nodes in 3rd Generation (3G) and 4th Generation (4G) networks. UDNs are expected to play a key part in addressing the predicted increase in traffic demands and high data rates in future networks. A UDN is connected to the backhaul network at an aggregation point, which may also be referred to as an egress point or a connection point. The number of nodes in a UDN can change, either by permanent extension of the UDN (i.e., by deploying more radio access nodes in the UDN) or by temporarily admitting more radio access nodes into the UDN (e.g., by temporarily admitting nomadic node(s) into the UDN).
There is a need for systems and methods for reliable, cost-efficient backhaul for networks, such as MNs and UDNs, having a varying topology.